Over 40 Cherry Varieties

Sutherland SA Produce grows, packs, exports and markets more than 40 cherry varieties in several countries. We understand the importance of managing each variety to bring maximum value to our clients.

Bing Cherry

The Bing cherry is one of the most popular varieties in the world. Developed in 1875 by S. Lewelling in Milwaukie, Oregon, USA and named after his chinese foreman Ah Bing who helped develop this strain (sources disagree as to whether Ah Bing was responsible for developing the cultivar, or whether it was developed by Lewelling and named in Bing's honor due to his long service as orchard foreman). What I love about this variety is the way it explodes in your mouth when you take a bite into the firm outer skin; the flavour is excellent and possesses a beautiful dark-red color. The Bing cherry crops medium to large size fruit with lots of sugar. Long Shelf-life, easy to handle. All Sizes. Very popular variety with retailers and consumers alike.

Parentage: Black Republican x Unknown

Cristalina Cherry (2C-61-22)

Similar to the Bing variety, the Cristalina cherry is an extremely attractive (heart-shaped) early variety. Developed at the Pacific Agri-Food Research Centre in Summerland, British Columbia, Canada, this variety was bred for the Canadian climate. The fruit is usually very firm and crunchy with a sweet wonderful flavour. One of the prettier cherry varieties, dark-red appearance with thick long green stems. Split resistant, crops heavy with good sized fruit. Great cherry for retailing. Long shelf-life, easy to handle. All Sizes. Very popular variety with retailers and consumers alike.

Parentage: Star x Van

Van Cherry

The Van cherry is a personal favorite, although we can't eat too many because they are just too sweet. Repeat business is a no-brainer with this excellent variety. Lots of flavour, picked almost-black and crops heavy with medium to large size fruit. Firm fruit with a softer flesh and very popular because of their sweetness. Van have short, thick, green stems that do not fall off the fruit like some other varieties as they age.

C-14 Cherry

The C-14 cherry is an early variety, looks pretty and eats well. Fruit crops heavy on the tree with medium to large size fruit. Beautiful Red color, excellent flavour, firm flesh and this variety continues to firm up on the tree up to 12-14 days after maturity. Good shelf life, easy to handle. Available November.

Parentage: Unknown

Red Sonnet (13S-39-51)

Red Sonnets taste so similar to Rainier cherries that if you closed your eyes, it would be almost impossible to tell them apart. Developed at the Pacific Agri-Food Research Centre in Summerland, British Columbia, Canada, this variety was bred for the Canadian climate. Marketed in the U.S.A. as "Strawberry Rainiers" because of their heart-shape, this variety is incredibly sweet and has a beautiful red-coloured skin. Our favorite cherry (usually we eat them all ourselves) and impossible for us to fill orders, first-come first-served basis. Limited availability in early July. Good Shelf-life when handled properly. Very popular variety with consumers and in demand. Sizes vary year-to-year.

Parentage: Van x Stella

Lapins Cherry (13S-28-26)

Lapins cherries are perhaps the no.1 selling variety in the world and represent half our cherry crop. Lapins cherries are known for their tiny pit, big fruit size, sweetness and dark almost-black colour; a favorite among Canadians, Americans, Europeans and Taiwanese. Developed by K.O. Lapins and W.D. Lane, at the Pacific Agri-Food Research Center in Summerland, BC, Canada. Fruit crops very large and firm. Good Shelf-life, easy to handle. Very popular variety with retailers and consumers alike. All Sizes.

Parentage: Van x Stella

Staccato Cherry (13S-20-09)

The Staccato cherry is one of the last and best Canadian varieties we have to offer. We have an enormous amount of these wonderfully sweet, very firm, crunchy, dark cherries. Developed by W.D. Lane at the Pacific Agri-Food Research Center in Summerland BC, Canada. Staccato cherries crop medium to large size fruit, 9.5R average. Long Shelf-life, easy to handle. Very popular variety with retailers and consumers alike.

Parentage: Sweetheart x Stella

Sonata Cherry (13N 6-59)

Sonatas are picked just before the Lapins and are an extremely big, black, beautiful cherry. Very firm flesh and they have a nice lustre that makes them very appetizing to look at and best of all they taste wonderful. This variety crops heavy and their green stems are long and thick. Very nice variety to retail and your customers will come back for more. Short picking window but it is available just before the onslaught of Lapins begins so you can make some good returns. Available by Air and Truck.

KORDIA CHERRY(Attika, Techlovicka II)

Developed in Czechoslovakia (Origin: RPIB, Holouvosy, Czech Republic in 1981), the Kordia is the most poplular cherry variety in the world. Known for its beautiful long, green stems, dark lustrous colour and wonderful sweetness and flavour. Picked about 14 days after Bing, demand far outweighs availability because many growers are hesitant to plant this variety. Kordia attains excellent returns to growers, but tonnage is significantly lower than similar season varieties (Lapins, Sweetheart & Staccato).

Parentage: Unknown

REGINA CHERRY (57/201)

The Regina variety may be second in popularity only to the Kordia. Picked after Lapins, this extremely pretty cherry has a dark lustrous colour, and very good sugars when picked at optimum maturity. Strong demand exceeds availabilty. Again... growers are hesitant to plant due to low crop tonnage versus other similar season cherry varieties. Although, new research has shown, implementing the latest pollination techniques and proper rootstocks can triple yields.

SOVEREIGN CHERRY (13S-21-01)

The Sovereign variety is a late cherry, picked about the same time as Staccato. Good size, very nice colour, great sugar and flavour, strong green stems and firmtech values. Ideal for our Asian clients including China.

Chelan Cherry (PC 7146-23)

The Chelan cherry is an early variety that goes against the grain because of its firmness and dark colour. Picking starts about 10-12 days before the Bing variety and in optimum weather conditions, the Chelan cherry can be very firm and crunchy. It's a dream come true for retailers. Good shelf-life and easy to sell because of it's beautiful appearance. Sizes medium to large size. Very popular variety with retailers and consumers alike.

Santina Cherry (13S-5-22)

The Santina cherry is a very attractive early variety with fantastic flavour and sweetness. Developed at the Pacific Agri-Food Research Centre in Summerland, British Columbia, Canada, this variety was bred for the Canadian climate. The fruit is usually very firm, crunchy and split resistant with a beautiful dark colour. Very popular all over the world, supply is limited to the first few weeks of the cherry harvest. Long shelf-life, easy to handle. All sizes. Very popular variety with retailers and consumers alike.

Parentage: Van x Stella

Skeena Cherry (13S-43-48)

The Skeena variety is picked mid-July around the same time as Lapins cherries, this is my favorite variety of red fleshed cherry. Developed at the Pacific Agri-Food Research Centre in Summerland, British Columbia, Canada, this variety was bred for the Canadian climate. Superhard, crunchy and one of the sweetest cherries you will ever sink your teeth into. The flavour is one you won't easily forget and you will instantly become a fan of this fantastic variety. Often marketed by name to keep your customers coming back again and again. Subject to availability. Long Shelf-life, easy to handle. All Sizes. Very popular variety with retailers and consumers alike.

Parentage: Unknown

Tieton Cherry (PC 7144-6)

The Tieton cherry is an early variety picked about 5-7 days before the Bing cherry. In optimum weather conditions the Tieton variety has excellent size, firmness and great flavour. Developed at the WSU Irrigated Research & Extension Center in Prosser, Washington, USA. Beautiful dark colour, export quality is crunchy, good shelf-life and easy to handle. Prone to larger sizes.

Parentage: Stella x Early Burlat

Early Robin Cherry (Rainier Type)

The Early Robin variety was discovered in 1990 by Robin Doty in Mattawa, WA, USA in his Rainier cherry block. This variety is marketed as an early Rainier cherry, the differences between the two varieties is very slight. Picked 7-10 days before Rainier, the Early Robin variety has excellent color (lots of blush), sugar, size and is very firm. A real winner, crops heavy, colors up nicely with medium to large size fruit. Good shelf-life. Subject to availability. Popular variety with consumers, an especially good seller in Asia.

Rainier Cherry (P1-680)

Rainier cherries (aka "Blush", "Yellow") are one of the hottest varieties on the planet and just happen to be one of our specialties. Incredibly sweet, crunchy and delicious...like eating candy! This variety is very fragile and the utmost care must be taken when picking and packing. Developed by H.W. Fogel at the Washington State University, Prosser, USA. We have an extremely large crop and I can confidently say we have one of the best packs. You will be very happy with our high quality standards. Good Shelf-life when handled properly. Very popular variety with consumers and in demand. All Sizes.

Parentage: Bing x Van

Sweetheart Cherry (13S-22-8)

Sweetheart cherries are a beautiful naturally red cherry and perhaps the no.2 selling variety in the world. They have an attractive heart-shaped appearance and the fruit is very sweet with extremely firm flesh. Developed by W.D. Lane at the Pacific Agri-Food Research Center in Summerland, BC, Canada and picking usually starts right after the Lapins variety. You will love eating this variety. Fruit usually crops medium to large size, 9.5R average. Long Shelf-life, easy to handle. Very popular variety with retailers and consumers alike.

Parentage: Van x 2S-28-28

Sentennial Cherries (SPC-103)

The Sentennial cherry is our last big volume cherry variety and we can never keep up with the demand for this super-hard, crunchy, super-sweet variety...one of our personal favorites. Developed at the Pacific Agri-Food Research Center in Summerland BC, Canada. This is the last cherry variety to be picked by most growers in the Okanagan Valley. Often marketed by name to keep your customers coming back again and again. Fruit crops medium to large size fruit, 9.5R average. Extremely Long Shelf-life, easy to handle. Extremely popular variety with retailers and consumers alike.

Parentage: Sweetheart x Unknown

Stardust Cherry-Blush Type (13N-07-70)

Picked about a week after the Rainier cherry, the Stardust variety has more of a "golden" colour with a beautiful red blush. Developed by W.D. Lane, at the Pacific Agri-Food Research Center, Summerland, BC, Canada. Stardust crops medium to large size fruit, very sweet, firm and crunchy with excellent flavour. This variety can extend your "Rainier" cherry sales by an extra 10 days. Excellent shelf-life.

Parentage: 2N-63-20 x Stella

CELESTE CHERRY (13S-24-28)

The Celeste cherry is a popular early season variety, picked about 14 days before Bing. Good size can be achieved on this early variety. Dark colour, good sugar and thick stems. Firmtech pressures are ideal for export to Europe, Middle East and Usa (not Asia).

SUMMIT CHERRY (4C-18-21)

Picked about 10 days before Bing, the Summit variety is known for its huge cherry size potential. Usually picked quite dark, with good sugars, only the first pick can be firm enough for Asian markets. Excellent cherry for Europe, Middle East and Usa. Although developed in Canada, this variety has been heavily planted in Spain.